Early puberty. A phrase that strikes fear in the heart of this mother of two young girls. I don’t think any parent wants her daughter to deal with breasts at the age of 6, or menstruation in the 4th grade. So several weeks ago, when I happened upon an interview with pediatric endocrinologist Louise Greenspan and clinical psychologist Julie Deardorff on the topic of early puberty in girls, I listened with great interest.

Definition of Normal Puberty Shifting

Soon after hearing the interview, I checked out The New Puberty: How to Navigate Early Development in Today’s Girlsby Greenspan and Deardorff.According to Greenspan and Deardorff in The New Puberty, “A
girl in 1860 got her first period around 16. A girl in 1920 got it around 14.
Today she’s likely to have a first period closer to 12 ½ years.” In addition, while
the average age of menstruation has fallen 6 months in the last 40 years in
Europe and America, the age of breast development has dropped by 2 years, which
may be because breasts are especially sensitive to estrogen (and estrogen mimickers in the environment). This decreasing
age for the onset of puberty in girls has been confirmed in numerous studies and cannot
be explained simply by changes in nutrition, body weight, or body fat.

There are the rare girls with an actual disorder (called Central
Precocious Puberty), but most girls entering puberty early are simply at the
early end of the normal range. But as Greenspan and Deardorffpoint out, “this ‘normal
curve’ has been a moving target for us in the medical community.” According to the authors, “Just a generation ago, less than 5 percent of girls started
puberty before the age of 8; today, that percentage has more than doubled.” [Note that although popularly puberty is synonymous with the beginning of menstruation, medically speaking puberty begins in the brain with hormonal secretions from the pituitary. Breast development and pubic hair are often the first external signs.]

While the book The New Pubertyspecifically addresses early puberty in girls, the authors have this to say about boys: "It's beyond the scope of this book to cover the pubertal process in boys today...Although some data suggest that they too are starting sooner today, the jury is still out...Although we won't address boys specifically in this book, much of the advice we provide--how to encourage healthy habits and build emotional closeness, for example--applies to them as well." I think it goes without saying that most parents aren't interested in their boys being exposed to hormone disruptors (whether they mimic estrogen or something else) either.

Causes of Early Puberty

According to The New Puberty, there are three main
suspects for the early onset of puberty: excess fat, chemicals, and stress.

Excess fat.

The percentage of US children who are obese has almost
tripled over the last 30 years. Total body fat mass can be thought of "as our largest endocrine (hormonal) 'organ,' much bigger than our pituitary, adrenals, thyroid, and sex glands combined," according to Greenspan and Deardorff. Fat tissue generates numerous substances, including leptin and estrogen, which not only may contribute to early puberty but also encourage the buildup of more fat tissue. In addition, many environmental chemicals that disrupt normal hormonal activity are lipophilic and stored in fat.

Social and psychological stressors, such as poor familial relationships or childhood trauma.

For example, absentee fathers are associated with early menstruation: “[g]irls who from an early age grow up in
homes without their biological fathers are twice as likely to experience
menarche early as are girls who grow up with both parents.” Childhood trauma,
such as sexual abuse or a depressed mother are also associated with earlier
onset of puberty. In addition, the strength of the infant-mother bond can
influence when a girl goes through puberty.

Today's girls grow up in a sea of industrial pollutants and synthetic chemicals. Two hundred and thirty-two synthetic chemicals have been found in umbilical cord blood of infants at birth, which demonstrates exposure in the womb. In the course of the authors’ own research, “we’ve found detectable levels of every chemical that we’ve tested for – even those that were banned years ago.” About 800 chemicals are known or suspected to be capable of interfering with hormones.

Chemicals pollutants currently being studied for their effects on pubertal timing include:

Risks of Early Puberty

There are numerous risks associated with the early onset
of puberty in girls. Behavioral health risks associated with early puberty
include depression, eating disorders, substance abuse, and body-image issues.
Physical health risks include breast and ovarian cancers, obesity, diabetes,
and cardiovascular disease.

Based on researchers' current understanding of the causes of early puberty, Greenspan and Deardorff make a number of recommendations for managing environmental toxins and establishing a healthy lifestyle. The following suggestions are especially important for
pregnant women and young girls because fetuses and children pass through “windows
of susceptibility” that make them uniquely vulnerable to the effects of hormone
disruptors, obesity, and stress on their pubertal timing. The first 21 tips are based on recommendations from The New Pubertyplus an additional 4 suggestions I am making based on information presented in the book.

Limit sugar, a major culprit in fueling the childhood obesity epidemic. Spikes in insulin from high sugar consumption can result in higher concentrations of the sex hormones connected to earlier periods. In fact, a recent study has specifically linked soda consumption by young girls to earlier puberty.

Eat more whole
fruits and vegetables. Fiber has been shown to protect girls from early
menstruation. Buy organic when possible to avoid exposure to pesticides, but don't limit consumption if you can't afford organic. Consult EWG’s annual report on pesticides in produce to help you limit your family's exposure.

Shop at the farmers market. This is a fabulous way to get fresh, local, and sometimes organic (or at least no-pesticide) produce at great prices. Go to localharvest.org to find markets near you. Read up on how to get the most out of your farmers market here. Of course an even more local option is to plant your own garden or participate in a community garden!

Eat less meat, and
choose low-fat, antibiotic-free, organic meats. Antibiotics are given to
livestock not only to help prevent illness, but to fatten them up and cause
them to mature faster. Their effect on human maturation is uncertain. Use
Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch lists to help you choose fish with the
lowest amount of toxins.

Avoid suspected
endocrine disrupting chemicals in personal products. Avoid fragrance or parfum, triclosan and triclocarbon found in antibacterial soaps and
toothpastes, aluminum chlorohydrate found in deodorants, phthalates, and other hormone disruptors. I was particularly interested that the authors recommend avoiding tea tree oil and lavender as potential endocrine disruptors, as these ingredients are frequently found in "natural" personal products and cleaning products. Click here for more information on choosing non-toxic personal products.

Use only the
safest sunscreens. Focus on using clothing and hats to limit sun
exposure, and use sunscreen on faces and other exposed areas.

Choose non-toxic cleaners. Read this post to learn how to identify one (note that labels
such as “natural,” “non-toxic,” and “green” are unregulated – you need to do
your own homework). The authors specifically mention avoiding borax and boric
acid, which is notable, since borax is often considered a “natural” cleaner.

Choose solid
flooring and area rugs over synthetic wall-to-wall carpet, which
off-gasses, particularly when new, and traps toxic dust. Hire an expert to remove or replace old carpet.

Control pests without
toxic pesticides and herbicides. We've successfully battled ants, cockroaches, gnats, and fruit flies without resorting to hiring a pest control company or using EPA-registered pesticides.

Get adequate
sleep.Be strict about LED screen
use (especially before bedtime), as the particular wavelength of light
emitted is known to disrupt secretion of the sleep hormone melatonin which
could possibly play a role in the onset of early puberty. LED screens are
common on tablets and computers.

Establish a
healthy level of fitness as a family (30 to 60 minutes of exercise per day).
Reduce risk of injury by participating in a variety of sports and activities.

Choose a K-8 school
to provide your middle school-aged daughter access to additional trusted adults
(former teachers), and the opportunity to build empathy for younger children
during her adolescent years.

Maintain a loving,
supportive family environment from infancy throughout childhood and
adolescence. More specific tips on how to accomplish this can be found in The New Puberty or other parenting resources.

Wash your hands! Especially before eating.

4 Additional Tips from Eco-novice

Don’t be afraid of natural sources of soy (such as tofu, edamame, and soy milk). Although natural soy contains isoflavones (plant estrogens), they are not true hormone minickers and may actually prevent or delay puberty. Experts theorize that natural soy may help the body be less sensitive to estrogen later in life.

Leave your shoes at the door. Experts estimate that 30 to 40 percent of contaminants in our home (including lead, pesticides, fertilizer,and cigarette ash) are brought in from outside. Taking off your shoes keeps a lot of harmful pollutants out of your house, off your floor, off of little kids' hands and out of kids' mouths. Removing your shoes is especially important if your home has wall-to-wall carpet or if you have a baby or toddler that spends a lot of time on the floor and mouthing objects. Find additional tips for avoiding exposure to lead from the CDC here.

Avoid inappropriate use of antibiotics.The authors point out that antibiotics are used to fatten up and accelarate the maturation process of livestock. They suggest limiting your exposure to antibiotics in meat because antibiotics may also affect pubertal timing in humans. I couldn't help but think that it is critical to limit your family's own use of antibiotics as a prescription medication as well. Antibiotics are an amazing life-saving medication that our society is squandering through misuse, especially in our administration of them to livestocks, but also in their overuse among people. Never pressure your doctor to give you antibiotics for an illness, and ask if it's safe to "wait and see" rather than immediately take antibiotics for an illness or infection. Click here for additional information on overuse of antibiotics.

Protect your family from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke. Don't allow smoking in your home or vehicle. Insist that smoking regulations be enforced at your place of work. Choose smoke-free restaurants, hotel rooms, and child care centers.

If you are interested in the topic of early puberty in
girls, I highly recommend you check out The New Puberty. In addition to greater
depth on the topics covered in this post, there are useful chapters that cover
additional important topics, such as how to engage in difficult conversations
with girls going through early puberty and principles for maintaining emotional
closeness with daughters to reduce the risk of early puberty. The books also
features an extensive list of recommended reading (for adults and girls) and
additional resources.

Are you concerned about early puberty?

What steps have you taken to avoid your family’s exposure
to hormone disrupting chemicals?

I don't have boys so this doesn't affect me directly but I think this should scare the heck out of all of us! I love these suggestions and am sharing this. My brother-in-law doesn't not worry about most of this stuff but, like anexactinglife.com, he pays attention to the milk for his daughter. I remember him saying "No wonder she is growing up too fast. With all the hormones in the milk."

Thank you for sharing this important information. I think the same holds true for boys-right? I'm so grateful that you shared so many ways to help prevent early puberty. This book is on my short 'must read' list. Thank you.

This is what the authors have to say about boys: "It's beyond the scope of this book to cover the pubertal process in boys today...Although some data suggest that they too are starting sooner today, the jury is still out...Although we won't address boys specifically in this book, much of the advice we provide--how to encourage healthy habits and build emotional closeness, for example--applies to them as well." I think it goes without saying that most parents aren't interested in their boys being exposed to hormone disruptors (whether they mimic estrogen or something else) either.

I added that to the main text of the post above as well. Thank you for the question - I should have clarified that earlier!

Yes, I think a lot of people wonder. The authors did say to seek natural (not manufactured -- like protein powder) soy. What the authors said in this book (natural soy can be protective) echos what I've heard from other experts as well. After all, Asians are one of the ethnic groups least affected by early puberty. That's probably due to other factors as well, but at least their soy intake isn't hurting them!

Such an important post! All of your suggestions are so great and positive reinforcement for my efforts raising my family. My sister-in-law got her period when she was nine and says she feels like her childhood got robbed -- so sad!

I don't have daughters, but since I have two sons, I follow boys' issues closely. I just finished listening to a book called Boys Adrift: The Five Factors Driving the Epidemic of Unmotivated Boys and Underachieving Young Men by Leonard Sax (highly recommend it) . In his book, one of the five factors actually has to do with the effects plastics and other toxins on the biochemistry of boys. He goes into depth on the subject -- it's fascinating (and frightening) the impact plastics and toxin have boys, both in terms of physical and mental health and development.

Thank you for sharing that title, Heather! I have a boy as well and will definitely check it out. We are definitely messing with boys' biochemistry as well with all these toxic chemicals/ hormone disruptors, but perhaps in different ways. Interesting the idea that it would affect motivation, b/c I know testosterone is tied to motivation. You have to wonder what the effect of all this estrogen mimicry is on boys.

How can you not mention the hormonal birth control & hormone replacement therapy that is excreted into our water supply in massive amounts and is known to cause spontaneous sex changes in fish from male to female?

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